The term cult has been used widely to discredit religions that are perceived as heretical, unorthodox, or, even, simply an appealing competitor for congregants. Thus we see it applied not only groups that could legitimately be described as cults, such as the Peoples Temple, the Branch Dividians, or Heaven's Gate, but also to significant religious groups such as the Mormons, the Seventh Day Adventists, or even Islam as a whole.
The truth of the matter, however, is far more complex.
Generally speaking, the characteristics of a cult include a strong, central, living religious authority whose word is absolute and unchallengeable. Members of the cult are usually cut off from their existing circle of family and friends or encouraged to isolate themselves from those contacts, often with warnings that outsiders cannot be trusted and with permission to be deceptive in dealing with former associates. They are often expected to subject themselves to intense control by the religious authority, with nearly every aspect of their lives regulated.
While these definitions may help identify a cult, they do not go very far in trying to distinguish the difference between a cult and "legitimate" religion. (Let me interject that I object to that term and the implication that religious experiences can be classified as legitimate or illegitimate, let alone that whole religions could be swept aside as illegitimate.)
Many cults do in fact have a strong religious teaching, and serve the religious/spiritual needs of their members much the same way non-cult religious serve the spiritual needs of their congregants. To say they are illegitimate is to deny the religious purposes they serve.
And, at the same time, many non-cult religions may share aspects of cult appeal. A particular pastor, rabbi, imam, yogi, guru, etc. may have a congregation that reveres him almost to a cult level. Particularly strict religious leaders may emphasize the purity of their own teaching and the corruptness of others, resulting in their followers feeling an alienation from society at large that resembles that of a cult member. As such, some congregations of even large religions may take on cultish aspects.
Perhaps the discussion we should be having is not about what is or is not a legitimate religion, and what is or is not a cult, but why many people of faith have such issues with people who have different beliefs, and how we can work towards a world that doesn't need pejorative labels for people who hold slightly different beliefs.
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